Despite efforts of the Anambra State Government in providing a standard market at a permanent site in Ogbaru, traders in the Fruit and Vegetable market at Silas Works Road, Onitsha, have resisted the relocation directive given by the state government.
The Superintendent General of Operation “Clean and Healthy Anambra”, OCHA Brigade, Mr. Kenneth Okonkwo, who is having a running battle with the relocation of the traders, maded it clear that the exercise is not to victimize anybody rather, but the government is trying to control the pace of market proliferation in the state, especially those located along the highways.
It is also aimed at trying to attack environmental pollution aggressively as well as target uniform and legal revenue collection to checkmate activities of fraudulent revenue collectors.
Onitsha, no doubt, is the commercial nerve center of the Southeast. The Human and market population growth have become massive and with businesses growing from every corner, streets and major roads have been converted to markets.
Government Displeased With Activities Of Traders
The growing trend has become worrisome to the state government as several challenges have risen as a result of that, especially in the area of environmental sanitation and collection of Internally Generated Revenue.
The level of pollution in the market leaves nothing to be desired and it is one of the fears of the Superintendent General of the “Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra” who says the traders’ preference to doing business in unauthorized areas where they subject themselves to accidents and high market levies is unacceptable.
At the Permanent site of the perishable goods market, Atani, in Ogbaru Local Government Area, some traders however express happiness for the kind gesture from the government in remembering to give them a permanent market after years of migrating from one area to another.
Aside the gigantic stalls built to accommodate over a thousand traders, more stalls as well as conveniences and boreholes are also provided to maintain adequate hygiene in the market.
Traders in the market have appealed to the government to move all the perishable goods market within the area to the permanent market, to save the lives of other sellers trading on the expressway as well as give the market its deserved glory.
